RichardHangHong

Looks interesting, some good stuff in there.

Welcome to the forums!

Welcome to the forums!

Welcome to the forums Clint!

Welcome to the forums Jackson!

Did you know that the length of your foot is the same as the length from the tip of your elbow to the heel of your hand? Makes it easier to know how much foot you kick with I guess!

To echo everyone elses's comments, timing is the key. It's easy to use ashi barai on a compliant partner and especially on someone who weighs much less than you do, but to get an effective ashi barai to work in all situations you have to get the timing right, just as their weight is about to be fully committed to that leg.

From a demo/kata to music point of view, but there's one person I know of who does it miles better, Jean Frenette. There's a few of his music demos on YouTube

That's why I don't wear tight jeans. At worst I have a pair of stretch fit pierre cardin jeans that I wear out on the town, but the rest of the time I wear loose fit jeans. Can't stand boot cut or straight fit ones. Too stiff for my liking. When I'm trying them on in the cubicle I'll do some knee lifts, try a couple of stances (shiko or kiba dachi mostly) if I'm comfortable while doing that I'll usually buy them.

Once a year we do a plain clothes class but it's usually doing just self defence work and not necessarily basics, kata or kumite. I might give it a go one week just to see how everyone takes to it. Also I must ditto Iceman's comments. I also make sure I can kick in any trousers/jeans that I buy when I'm trying them on in the changing rooms.

Any of Nakayamas Best Karate series books. There's 11 books, Vol 1 & 2 are great for getting tips on improving your kicks and punches. I still go back to them regularly, especially the chapter on "The Hips"

Like bearich said, it was hard to see if he was using his hips that much. Looks good from an asthetic point of view though. Very quick and strong. But my personal preference is for the non-competition styled performed katas.

I agree with the same views. If you're a senior grade and you're sparring a junior grade then you have a responsibility to teach them and lift them up to your level, not to use them as a punching bag. However, in the case of someone trying to take your head off, I will most of the time give 2-3 verbal warnings about their control and tell them to ease up a bit. If that doesn't work I give them one or two slightly stronger digs to calm them down, usually catch them in the solar plexus or floating ribs to knock a little bit of wind out of them, along with an additional verbal warning to calm down. If after all of that they still don't settle I drop them to the floor and land a solid gyakutsuki with a kiai when they're lying there and finish by telling them I won't warn them again. It's rare that I ever have to do that, I could count the times I've done that far on one hand and haven't had to do it again in about 2 years. If ever I have to warn anyone about poor control I always pull them up after class and have a quiet chat to make them aware of what they are doing and what needs to change as a lot of the time they don't realise they are doing it, it's just overexcitement and/or nervousness of sparring a senior grade. It's partly testosterone, but also pride and ego (as someone said, to get bragging rights). This is why you tend to see this thing happening more with men. But believe me, it still happens with women too and they can be a lot nastier with each other. Just my humble opinion

Sounds like fun, I'll give that a go next time I'm in class

OUCH! Your poor thing! So sorry to hear that. I'll keep my fingers crossed for your speedy recovery.

Bombadier Atomic Bolt

So are you out of action Kirsty? I'm really sorry to hear that. I was wondering why I hadn't seen you around here or on the SRK Forums for so long. What injury did you get?

Just thought I'd give you all an update. The pain of the bruising on both my arms and shins have gone, but I've still got a couple of rather nasty looking patches that are slowly fading away. Thanks for your help and advice guys. Oh and Sohan, the warm compresses worked a treat! Cheers!

That's good to hear Orion. You see, a little patience can go a long way.

Studying 2 arts at the same time can be good. Like bushido_man said, provided you have a solid base to start from. E.g. I didn't start training in Iaido until I was a Nidan in Karate. My fiancee is a shodan and has just recently started Tai Chi and both of us have found our secondary arts have helped our karate training immensely because we have something to relate it to.

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!

It does seem somewhat farcical doesn't it?

That's what I meant too Sohan. I was just rushing around as I posted. Oops! Should have put a bit more detail in there. Obviously it's a bad idea to stretch a torn muscle. However, if it's just been pulled or strained, a bit of light (and I do mean LIGHT!) stretching keeps it from knotting up too badly.

I'm going on holiday to Mauritius in December for 1 month and can't bare the thought of not getting any training in. Does anyone know of any karate clubs in Mauritius or at least where to start looking? Preferably Shotokan or Goju please. Thanks in advance Richard

Cheers Kez, I'm going to the pharmacy later so I'll see if I can pick some up. I heard arnica (sp?) is supposed to be good for bruises but I've no idea what it is, some sort of cream?